What is so Special about Today?

“What’s so different about Today?”
1 John 5:1-6
John 15:12-17
May 17, 2009


Repeat these words after me: Abide, love, joy, commandment, friends.

These are the important lessons to remember about the scripture today. Abide in Jesus Christ, Love one another, find your joy within the love of God, obey God’s commandments, and remember Jesus is always your friend.

I am a lectionary preacher, which means that there are certain scriptures that we preach from, based on a three year cycle. For the last few weeks after Easter, we have been studying scriptures from Acts, 1 John, and the book of John. Every week it seems that it is the same old thing – love, love, love love. It is the same thing love one another, love God , love Jesus. I am beginning to wonder, just how many sermons can one person preach on the subject of love. The word love is actually mentioned 8 different times in the gospel lesson.
And it doesn’t stop there. Jesus likes to teach this lesson over and over.


He said, the two great commandments are this: that you love God with
everything that you have, your heart, soul, mind and strength (or as another
translation puts it - your passion, prayer and intelligence 2) and love your
neighbour, each other, as you love yourself.

Elsewhere he told his disciples to love their enemies as well as their
friends. It is this inclusiveness of Jesus, which is often so hard to
follow. Our friends are often hard to love, let alone those we don’t think
of as our friends. Most of us have people we find hard to get on with,
people we find unattractive, those who outwardly oppose us, or make our
lives difficult.

But Jesus wants us to be as loving and concerned for one another as he is
for us. There is so much that we can do which will enable us to remain
abiding in God’s love by reaching out to those around us.

Respect, generosity, kindness, gentleness, compassion, encouragement are all
precursors for love. They are the things which build up a person and give
them confidence.

As church we are called to live lives which reflect our Lord and Master.

You have to notice, that Jesus didn’t make his teachings about love a friendly suggestion, or a helpful hint, but a commandment - We are commanded to Love one another as I have loved you.
We all know that it is not possible to love everybody. Not everybody is like us, not everybody proclaims Jesus Christ as Lord. And I don’t know about you, but loving people that I don’t know is not my struggle. It is harder to show love to the people that you come in contact with all of the time. Our family members, our coworkers, our neighbors, people whom you have to deal with, but you don’t understand. And you don’t see eye to eye with – how are you to get along with them? That is the challenge.
John 15 is all about the vine – and being connected to the vine. If we commit to live our life in the love of God – we have to power to love any one in any situation. Jesus says that if you abide in me , and my word abides in you – then you can ask and it shall be given. Prayer – is the only way to love others.
But in this scripture, Jesus gives us another powerful secret weapon to get through life.
Back in the day – There were people who had special status – they were known as friends of the king. They were allowed into the kings chamber the first thing in the morning. They knew all about the kings life and all about the kings decisions. Before the king would discuss politics with their advisors, he would discuss his plans with his friends. When the friends were in the street, and they were about to get robbed, or stopped by a soldier, or in the market with no money – they had this little card that they could pull out that was signed by the king. That card read that this was a friend of the emporer – and that absolutely no harm was to come of him or her. Everyone knew not to mess with a friend of the king – thy lived their lives in peace.

Jesus gives us all that same ticket. He says no one has greater love than this, to lay down his life for one’s friend. You are my friends if you do what I command. I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing. But I have called you friends because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my father.
Jesus was a master amongst the masters. Jesus teachings are considered the greatest in the world – right up there with muhammed, Buddha, confuscios, Moses, Elijah. But the one thing about all of those great teachers, - they were always in control. They didn’t have no friends, they would never stoop down to the level of their students.
Jesus is a friend to everyone who listens to his words and obeys. He not only tells us to love – he loves us. He makes us a part of the most precious love affair in the world – the love of God the father and Jesus the son. If you are connected to that love you can love anybody. Love one another as I have loved you.
Love is how we feel about others, love is not whether we like people. Love is how we live and what we do.
What makes this scripture any different today then yesterday. How many times do we listen to a sermon on love – every day. Love is how we chose to take the next step, it how we respond to people, it is how we treat one another. Every day we need to be reminded of how important is it to love.
Amen.